HWS Hosts International Debate Tournament

Hobart and William Smith recently hosted the 2017 North American Universities Debating Championships (NAUDC), bringing together some of the world’s top collegiate debate teams for the largest debate tournament in the history of the Colleges.

The tournament, which was held Friday, Sept. 29 through Sunday, Oct. 1, welcomed 144 teams from nearly 50 institutions for a total of more than 400 guests. Debates took place in venues across HWS, with the final round taking place on Sunday, Oct. 1 in Albright Auditorium.

“The HWS Debate Team is looking forward to hosting the largest North American Championship in history, and for the first time ever, we have teams joining us from Mexico at the championships,” said Assistant Debate Team Coach Steve Penner. “Our team has put in a lot of work in planning the event, and seeing it come together over the weekend is always fulfilling. HWS has a global reputation for hosting outstanding debate tournaments, and we know this will be no exception.”

Included among the HWS Debate Team’s most recent achievements are: winning the prestigious Hart House IV Championship, advancing to the elimination rounds at the Yale IV and the U.S. National Championships, competing in the final round of the highly competitive Colgate Open, winning the novice division of the Eastern U.S. Championships, and winning the open division of both the Brad Smith Invitational at the University of Rochester and the Cornell Inter-Varsity tournaments.